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Hero
|next = |viewers = (live / total) 2.87m / -- |synopsis = Jimmy conjures up a bold plan to solicit new clients, but has to face the consequences when the scheme strains his relationships with a rival firm. }} "Hero" is the fourth episode of the first season of Better Call Saul and the fourth episode of the series altogether. Summary Teaser In a flashback, Jimmy (under the alias "Saul Goodman") and Stevie come across an unconscious man in an alleyway. Jimmy pokes the man with a stick and the man wakes up, flipping the two of them off and continuously taunting them. Frustrated with the man's rudeness, Stevie takes the money from his wallet and Jimmy steals his Rolex watch. Stevie offers a trade of the money in exchange for the more valuable Rolex and eventually offers him an additional $580 to bring the total to $1,580. It is later revealed that it was all a scam set up by Jimmy and the "unconscious" man, who is actually Jimmy's longtime friend, Marco Pasternak. Act I In the present, Craig and Betsy Kettleman plead with Jimmy not to expose them, offering $30,000 as a bribe that he initially refuses. Jimmy retorts with the option of them hiring him as their lawyer, which is in turn refused by the Kettlemans, who claim that he is "the kind of lawyer guilty people would hire." They refer back to the cash bribe. The next day Jimmy thanks Mike for his assistance in solving the Kettlemans' disappearance. As Nacho is released from police custody, he discreetly accuses Jimmy of tipping off the Kettlemans and warns him that he will face "consequences." Jimmy rebuts by implying that he warned the family for the children's sake, and that Nacho brought his troubles upon himself since he let himself get identified by a neighbor. Back at his back room office, it is revealed that Jimmy took the Kettlemans' bribe as a "retainer." He calculates the fees which he can use to claim the money with, claiming premium rates, travel fees, storage, and other assorted expenses to cover $29,000 of the $30,000 given to him by the Kettlemans. Staring at the remaining $1000, Jimmy begins formulating an idea. Act II The next day, Jimmy purchases a new wardrobe from a local tailor, gets a makeover from Mrs. Nguyen at her beauty salon, and posts a billboard advertisement which shares obvious and deliberate similarities with HHM, presumably out of spite. When Kim confronts Jimmy and presents a cease-and-desist order at Howard's behest, he at first playfully tries to shrug it off until he angrily admits that Howard "fired the first shot" by attempting to force Jimmy to cease using his name for business. Jimmy tells Kim that Howard is not appreciating her talent properly and that she deserves better. Kim warns Jimmy that Howard is preparing an injunction against him, and that this is a fight Jimmy will not be able to win. Act III In court, Jimmy and Howard argue in a judge's chambers: Jimmy claims to be operating under "fair use", while Howard is firm in his assessment that Jimmy is clearly violating HHM's trademarks. The judge agrees with Howard and orders Jimmy to take down the billboard within 48 hours. However, Jimmy has been banking on this ruling and begins calling local news outlets in an attempt to cover his predicament as a human interest story. When the media fails to show interest in his story, Jimmy organizes a video plea, begging for sympathy to his situation. He hires a group of UNM film students to shoot a speech in front of the billboard, portraying himself as a victim. During filming, however, the worker who is removing the advertisement slips and falls, held on only by his harness. Jimmy hurries to the man's rescue and pulls him to safety while his film crew and the public watch. It is revealed that the accident was staged by Jimmy and the worker as a publicity stunt. Howard and Kim, watching the news, see through the ruse instantly. Due to his newfound popularity, Jimmy receives numerous new consultations. Act IV As Jimmy visits Chuck, he brings him his newspapers as usual but hides the Albuquerque Journal, which bears a front-page story on Jimmy's "rescue", to keep Chuck from seeing it. Chuck, still oblivious to Jimmy's stunt, congratulates him on his success. Chuck notices the Journal is missing, which Jimmy dismisses. After he leaves, a suspicious Chuck painstakingly hurries to his neighbor's house and collects their copy of the newspaper, leaving $5 as compensation. Back at home, Chuck reads about the story about Jimmy. Official Photos better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-howard-fabian-kim-seehorn-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-sized-3-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-6-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-kim-seehorn-2-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-4-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-2-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-sized-658.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-jimmy-odenkirk-5-sized-935.jpg better-call-saul-episode-104-chuck-mckean-sized-935.jpg Trivia *This is the first episode of Better Call Saul where the "Saul Goodman" alias is used. *Just like the tune Marco hums is Deep Purple's Smoke On the Water, Jimmy's howls are a reference to another Deep Purple song, Hush. *At the tailor's store, Jimmy checks out an orange shirt. In ''Breaking Bad'' he will often wear bright-colored shirts like the aforementioned one. *The worker that performs the billboard publicity stunt appeared briefly during the episode "Mijo" as one of Jimmy's clients. *The name shown on the Alley Guy's license is Henry Gondorff. This is the same name as the main character of the 1973 caper film The Sting ''(Gondorff was a once-great con-man hiding from the FBI). *When Jimmy takes Chuck's daily groceries out of his trunk, the New York Times headline reads "Israel Acts To Seize Arab Land After Blast; Bush Delays Talk". This edition was published on June 19, 2002, indicating the exact time frame this episode took place. Production Credits Starring= Starring * Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill * Jonathan Banks as Mike Ehrmantraut * Rhea Seehorn as Kim Wexler * Patrick Fabian as Howard Hamlin * Michael Mando as Nacho Varga * Michael McKean as Chuck McGill |-| Guest Starring= Guest Starring * Julie Ann Emery as Betsy Kettleman * Jeremy Shamos as Craig Kettleman * Mel Rodriguez as Marco Pasternak * Eileen Fogarty as Mrs. Nguyen * Kevin Weisman as Stevie * Dawnn Lewis as Judge * Josh Fadem as Joey Dixon * Dorian Missick as Detective Dunst |-| Co-Starring= Co-Starring * Paul Geoffrey as Tailor * Eddie J. Fernandez as Billboard Worker * Julian Bonfiglio as Sound Guy * Rose Liotta as Chuck's Neighbor * Staci Robbins as Lady Onlooker * Bau Thi Duong as Salon Employee #1 * Le Hai Dang as Salon Employee #2 |-| Uncredited= Uncredited * Gene N. Chavez as HHM Attorney * Tim Childress as HHM Attorney * Alan Humphrey as Lawyer * Jyl Murray as HHM Attorney Featured Music *'"Smoke On the Water"' by Deep Purple *'"Listen"' by Chicago *'"Battle Hymn of the Republic (LP Version)"' by Herbie Mann *'"Stick N Brush"' by Kenny Werner *'"Ma Mamma Mia"' by That's Amore *'"Samba Tropical"' by APM Music Library *'"Tropical December"' by Steve Rice *'"Unsquare Dance"' by Dave Brubeck *'"Billboard Stunt"' by Dave Porter *'"Magic Hands"' by Dave Porter References to other media Jimmy makes many references to other media during the series. In this episode, he makes references to: *Duck Soup'' (1933) *''Spartacus'' (1960) *''The Thing'' (1982) Memorable Quotes es:Hero Category:Better Call Saul episodes Category:Season 1 episodes (Better Call Saul)